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Monthly Archives: July 2014

The blog hop for Beachwalk Press’ 3rd anniversary went really well. I was told that we had more than five hundred comments all together…that is incredibly exciting. I had 20 altogether, the most I have ever had on this blog or my other blog, so I am really thrilled. Thank you to everyone who came to read our blogs and those who left such encouraging emails. It is always greatly appreciated.

The winner of the gift card was Shelly Small. She elected to have an Amazon gift card…

Congrats Shelly!

Thank you readers for all your support and fellow writers for all your kindness.

Beachwalk Press is celebrating their third anniversary this weekend. As part of the celebrations, they are sponsoring a blog hop. As one of their newest writers, I am honored to be allowed to take part.

The subject, as you can see by the title of this post, is three favorite things about being an author. Not as easy said as done, but here we go:

I have always wanted to be a writer. From the time I was in middle school I was writing short stories in the back of my notebooks. There was something magical about losing myself in a world where I could be, and do, whatever I wanted. But, of course, life got in the way. First it was high school…boys and music and learning to drive. And then it was love, marriage, and children. But I never forgot about my dreams.

So, I guess my first favorite thing about being an author is that it takes me back to those middle school days when writing meant time to myself, time to be who and whatever I want to be. If that means a damaged home health aide, or a divorced doctor, or a sexy model, I can be anything and anyone I want to be and I can do things I would never do in my own life.

As a freelance writer, I deal with a lot of clients. Although my work is not always fiction, working with different clients, each with different expectations, helps me grow as a writer. Working with many different editors helps me see how I can strengthen my writing style, how I can improve my grammar, and that writing is a constantly evolving skill. So, the second thing I like about being an author is the ability to grow and improve in my craft.

The third thing I like about being an author is the interaction with readers. No one can honestly say they do not like having people tell them that the thing they worked so hard on–their baby that they developed from the first spark of an idea all the way through publication–impacted a life, even it was only to keep someone entertained for a few hours on a rainy winter night. As a newer writer, I can’t say that I have had a lot of reader feedback, but I love every bit I have had, even those few negative comments. All criticism offers something positive in that they make me want to improve my writing that much more.

I simply like to write. I like taking an idea and allowing the characters to take me on a ride that even I can’t predict. I like the feeling of a job well done, of completing something that had not existed before I put it down on paper. And I would be lying if I said I didn’t like seeing a cover that reflects my characters, my themes, my ideas. And has my name…or pseudonym…written across the bottom.

Writing is a part of me, a part of who I am. I am proud to call myself a writer.

For those of you who are still with me….Beachwalk Press will be sponsoring a grand prize giveaway which is: $100.00 to either Amazon or Barnes and Noble (reader’s choice). If you want to be considered for this prize, please leave your name and email address in the comment section below.

Demetrius Gallo is a former race car driver, so it’s a painful stroke of irony when a car accident leaves him helpless to care for himself. Always a man who had to be in control, he’s frustrated by his circumstances. His frustration is only compounded when his brother hires a beautiful woman to be his home health aide, to be a witness to his frailty.

Demetrius knows he’s a difficult patient. He refuses to accept his limitations, yet he flounders in the fear that he will never be a whole man again. Demetrius needs to feel like a man, needs to feel like he can still be the virile male he always presented to the world. He convinces his home health aide, Sutton, to share more than his recovery, to share his bed. With Sutton, Demetrius finds pleasure beyond anything he has ever known. But then it becomes something more.

When Sutton pulls away, Demetrius thinks she’s in love with his younger brother Antonis. However, when pushed, Sutton reveals a past that is just as tangled in hurt and grief as his own. Can two broken people find happiness in each other? Do they even want to?

I will be participating in the 7th anniversary celebrations for Long and Short Reviews. I wrote a blog post for the celebration that you will be able to find on their website: http://www.longandshortreviews.com in August. I should have a direct link to the post in a few weeks. I’ll post that here for you as soon as a I can…

If you visit my blog post on their website, you will be eligible to win a $10 gift certificate at Amazon…so visit mine and all the other great writers as often as possible!